China’s Electric Car Makers Poised To Raise Their Game In Europe

Transportation China’s Electric Car Makers Poised To Raise Their Game In Europe Neil Winton Senior Contributor Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. New! Follow this author to stay notified about their latest stories. Got it! Aug 16, 2022, 01:50pm EDT | New! Click on the conversation bubble to join the conversation Got it! Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin LYNK&CO 01 SUV car on the Auto Expo.

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[+] GEELY Automobile and Volvo Motor. (Photo by Zhang Peng/LightRocket via Getty Images) LightRocket via Getty Images Chinese electric car makers have already established a bridgehead in Europe, tempted by high prices, and the companies are set to engage a higher gear. The bottom end of the European electric car market is vulnerable because current manufacturers are more concerned with profits than sales, according to French auto consultancy Inovev .

SAIC’s MG began sales of mainly electric vehicles in Britain in 2017 and soon moved to all of Europe. Geely’s Polestar has also been a big player. “The MG brand was soon joined by other Chinese brands such as (Volvo/Geely’s) Polestar and Lynck&Co, Aiways, NIO, Dongfeng, JAC, BYD, Hongqi, BAIC, Xpeng, Maxis, in short a dozen brands are now present on the European market,” Inovev said.

Chinese vehicles sold in all of Europe reached 75,000 in the first half of 2022, suggesting 150,000 is possible for the whole year, according to Inovev. In 2021, under 80,000 were sold. Price is the key.

“Car buyers are put off by the excessively high prices of European electric vehicles. European and now Korean electric carmakers favor profit margins over volume, which leaves an entire section of the market, the least expensive cars, at the mercy of Chinese carmakers,” Inovev said in a report. According to Schmidt Automotive Research , SAIC and Geely account for just under 9 in 10 of all Chinese battery electric vehicles (BEV) sold in W estern Europe.

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6 million total market,” Schmidt said. Western Europe includes the 5 big markets of Germany, France, Britain, Italy and Spain. The Chinese threat will gather pace in 2025 when the next round of CO2 fleet average rules kick in and more BEVs are required in the market.

“We see the likes of MG, and perhaps BYD, more likely to have success penetrating the volume sectors lower down. From around 2027 once Europe 7 legislations for ICEs (internal combustion engines) will make it next to impossible to make a profit from gasoline ICE models,” Schmidt said. Follow me on Twitter .

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